Future of Indivisible

What Happened presents many ways to unpack what and who may have been responsible for the 77,000 votes in just three states that produced the 2016 electoral majority. Two behaviors are the most troublesome: FBI Director Comey’s announcement a few weeks before the election and multifaceted forms of Russian interference.

Also, two strategies failed.  First, dancing with big money proved far more problematic than being big money and second, allowing the vigorous reform movement led by Bernie Sanders to wither.  That is the book in eighty words.

Comey-like impact on voter opinions may not repeat in future elections, but launching an active reform agenda to counter global corporate interests appears insurmountable.  An incompetent commercial media serves the current communications environment and building alternative networking forums will require exponential growth and integration as a countermeasure.

Due to a genuine belief in the goodness of people what the book partly neglects is the ongoing erosion of an independent press and how it strips and chips away at democracy’s sacred institutional promises. That why we are day to day with Indivisible.

2018 with Indivisible

The lack of reform in the institutions that hold Democracy’s assurances as their core beliefs continue to render three products.  First, a sustained condition of dismay and confusion, second the overt encouragement of tribalism and third the subtle encouragement of authoritarian solutions. The 2018 elections will show how the “liberties” argument within the reform movement still .hold the vote cards on change.

2020 with Indivisible

The irony In a society a violent as America in its homeland and throughout the world is the irony of common ground is the debate on the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It is here where the fear of government overreach reveals secret and hidden-in-plain-sight levels of corporate control of government agencies and related institutions. It seems the natural desire to protect our liberties and the genuine interest in rooting out corruption has become an essential marriage that will achieve the assurance of a straightforward result. Perhaps a more apt description of common ground is a level playing field.

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Priority Issue: Money


We are developing a collection of presentations on corruption (e.g. pol-money) see Video  Bob’s list (above) pretty much covers it. There are lots of people working on how to end this mess we find ourselves in these days.  Have a look.

Establishing the link between corporate financial contributions to Congress and their voting patterns takes millions in nonprofit dollars just to figure out the good and bad of it with a sense of precision. The following is a rough summary from two years of analysis (2013-2015) and two years in preparation published by the Roosevelt Institute in 2017.  See 50 Shades of Green in the Shared Reading Section.  A very rough summary might read as follows:

  1. Congressional representatives are much more likely to break with their party and side with the providers of money.
  2. Analysis of the members of the House Financial Services Committee. far more likely to support banks on repealing elements (drip, drip strategy) of Dodd-Frank for money.
  3. Every additional $1,000 given to a Congressional person decreased or increased the odds of voting for or against a bill by more than 20 percent.

Conservatives and Progressives agree that speech is protected by the United States Constitution but differ when it comes to political speech.  The decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (link to pdf) extended the Constitution’s protections of speech to corporations (2010) as well as individuals.  Critics of the decision say “money is not speech” highlighted by the sticker that reads, “I’ll believe a corporation is a person when Texas executes one.”    Proponents say a corporation has a right to develop and promote legislation.  Thus, the question should be about proof of balance and fairness instead of money. but the power to reset conditions in that direction continuously and with dedication.  How?  Make corruption illegal and I mean prison time illegal.

The wealthiest of the wealthy are able to buy up political power while ordinary Americans have functionally zero influence over their nation’s policy and behavior.  America is a corporatist oligarchy, not a democracy.

How many dollars (or hours) will it take you to capture the attention of your Congressional Representative and get the results you seek?

How Can the U.S. Change the Influence of Money in Politics?
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/03/fix-money-in-politics/473214/

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Roger Stone’s Rules

The documentary on Roger provides the essential background for why the body politic is acting the way it does today (2017).  It is partially balanced by understanding the idea of the political hallucinations (see Groundhogs), but I would include McCain’s recent (perhaps last) presentation to his fellow Senators that will go down in history as the, “we should stop acting like a-holes” speech.  In the meantime, while waiting to see if Congress will get back to “regular order”, the following is our take on Roger’s rules that are getting us into this mess.

  1. Fake sincerity or get nowhere in politics
  2. Politics isn’t theater. it is performance art for its own sake.
  3. White shirt + tan face = confidence
  4. Open multiple fronts on your enemy
  5. Confused and beset on every side.
  6. Praise ’em before you hit ’em
  7. Admit nothing, deny everything, launch a counterattack
  8. Nobody ever built a statue to a committee
  9. Avoid obviousness
  10. Never do anything till you’re ready to do it.
  11. Always keep the advantage.
  12. Hate is a stronger motivator than love.
  13. He who speaks first will lose.
  14. Attack, attack, attack, never defend.
  15. Folks want government out of the bedroom and the boardroom.
  16. Lay low, play dumb, keep moving.
  17. To win do everything. Nothing is on the level.
  18. There are more, lots more.

The Pardons

Niccolò Machiavelli/Quotes

It is better to be feared than loved if you cannot be both.

Men judge generally more by the eye than by the hand, for everyone can see and few can feel.

Every one sees what you appear to be, few really know what you are.

Politics have no relation to morals.